Beckman Institute            University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign             

Syzygy Homepage

Using this Documentation

Getting Started

• GettingSoftware.html explains how to download and compile the source code. If you're on Windows and using Microsoft Visual C++, you'll also need to look at VisualStudioBuildVars.html. Note that most of Syzygy can now be compiled on Windows using the MinGW GNU compiler; the exceptions are the input device driver plugins and the Python bindings, which still require a Microsoft compiler. Hopefully you'll be able to download precompiled copies of these from the same place where you got this archive...
• SupportingLibraries.html covers installing and using supporting libraries that give Syzygy extra functionality.
• Standalone.html Standalone mode: Running Syzygy programs on a single PC without setting up a cluster.
• ExampleCode.html: How to run the included example programs, where their data files should be installed, etc.
• TrackingSim.html: Using Syzygy's tracking and input device simulator (inputsimulator) to control a program in the absence of a tracked input device (this is currently required in standalone mode).
• SystemConfiguration.html describes interacting with the Syzygy Database to specify parameters of your virtual reality system in both Standalone and Cluster modes. This includes the following further topics:
  • GraphicsConfiguration.html: How to specify the arrangement of your display devices. Some examples are contained in GraphicsConfigExamples.html.
  • PathConfiguration.html shows how to set up search paths for sound files, texture images, and so on.
  • When running in cluster mode, the information on configuring input devices is also relevant, as is the information on configuring virtual computers. See Setting Up, Testing, and Managing a Syzygy Cluster, below.

Creating Your Own Syzygy Progams

• Programming.html: Writing a program using Syzygy's application frameworks.
• QuickPort.html: Porting an OpenGL/GLUT-based application, in a hurry.
• CompileCPP.html: How to build Syzygy C++ programs.
• PySZG.html: How to write Syzygy Python programs.
• SceneGraph.html: Using the distributed scene graph API.
• Sound.html: Using the sound system to produce spatially-localized sound.
• Objects.html: Using external meshes (.obj or .3ds) and animations in Syzygy.
• Navigation.html: How to use built-in functions for navigation in your application.
• Interaction.html: How to use built-in classes and functions for picking, grabbing, and otherwise interacting with virtual objects.
• PortabilityLayer.html: The portability layer consists of classes and functions that wrap platform-specific implementations of sockets, serial ports, time, threads, mutexes, etc.
• SceneGraphTutorial.html: Shows how to manipulate Syzygy scene graphs from a Python prompt. A good starting point for writing Python programs based on the distributed scene graph framework. See also SceneGraph.html.
• RandomNumbers.html describes facilities of the master/slave application framework (described in Programming.html) for generating shared sequences of pseudo-random numbers in all running instances of an application. Not tested much.

Setting Up, Testing, and Managing a Syzygy Cluster

• DistributedOS.html: Concepts and commands for setting up Syzygy PC clusters and running programs on them (Look here and in Configuring Virtual Computers for an explanation of virtual computers).
• ClusterTest.html: Basic testing of your Syzygy cluster.
• InputDevices.html describes the use of the input device infrastructure in Cluster Mode.
• InputDevices-Drivers.html lists the supported input devices.
• InputDeviceConfiguration.html explains how to configure input devices.
• PForth.html introduces the PForth ("Pseudo-FORTH") input-filtering language. It's a stack-based language very similar to FORTH; it's designed for applying simple transformations to streams of input events (e.g. re-mapping input device button indices).
• AppFeatures.html: A few pet tricks for managing Cluster Mode applications using the 'dmsg' command.

Miscellaneous

• szgview.html: szgview is a viewer for supported file formats.
• SyzygyEnvironmentVariables.html: A complete listing of environment variables either affecting or affected by Syzygy operation.

Advanced Topics

• SharedWorldTutorial.html shows how to use the experimental extensions to the Syzygy distributed scene graph that allow peer-to-peer sharing of scene graphs between clusters.
• InputClasses.html contains some esoteric information about the code objects that handle input data.
• InputFilters.html briefly describes how to write an input-event filter in C++. For most purposes it's more convenient to write such filters in the PForth language.

Background Information

• Architecture.html: Overall design of Syzygy.
• Goals.html: Our goals for Syzygy.
• Future.html: Where the software is going; what's likely to get changed.
• ChangeLog.html: A record of the changes between versions, since the beginning.
• Testing.html: Tested configurations and testing procedures.
• Bugs.html: Known bugs, problems, and issues with the current version.

[Schedule] [Labs] [Beckman Meeting Rooms] [Equipment] [Projects] [CUBE Projects] [Syzygy] [VSS] [People] [Events] [Publications]